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London Associates and Strand Lighting have won the prestigious industrial product design award at the recent DBA Design Effectiveness Awards, with Strand Lighting's SL Series of spotlights. Strand’s product development manager, Ian Thomson, and senior design engineer, Martin Freeborn, both attended the awards presentation dinner, held at the Hilton Hotel in Mayfair. Thomson explained that Strand's had been working with London Associates for 14 years and the objective had been to create a new product for the world market, that was smaller, lighter in weight and consumed less electricity than conventional models. The SL Series met all of these requirements with significant results. Within three months of its launch, the SL Series has easily become the best-selling product in Strand Lig

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As a prelude to the recent PLASA 2000 show, Turbosound held its annual convention at Chelsea Village - home of Chelsea FC.

The day-long event was attended by a number of Turbosound’s international and UK distributors, as well as main installers. Following initial addresses by chairman Mike O’Flynn and managing director Alan Wick, sales appraisal and strategy reports were given by Gary Smith and Bill Woods respectively.

Distributors were honoured with awards for outstanding sales activity within given categories, and the day’s formal activities concluded with a briefing about new Turbosound products in the marketplace.

(Reports that Chelsea only allowed in one UK distributor are untrue.)

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Hayden Laboratories, UK distributor of Denon products, has launched the latest new twin CD player from Denon. The DN-2100F twin CD player expands the comprehensive Denon range with an affordable, mid-range model, which sits neatly between the recently launched DN-2600F and DN-1800F twin CD players. Its standard features include Digi-Scratch, Key Adjust, Brake/Platter-S, Seamless Loop and Hot Start/Stutter, alongside unique features such as Power On Play, Repeat Play and Pitch Lock. The machine features two audio channels (stereo), a sampling frequency of 44.1kHz (normal pitch) and a frequency response of 20Hz to 20kHz. The DN-2100 is guaranteed to satisfy the wish-list of any contemporary DJ, offering maximum flexibility in the most cost-effective package.
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Indochine X PixMob Fan Immersion

It's a bird! It's a plane! It's - 40 thousand LED pixels on a ceiling!!! Indochine's whirlwind tour transports fans to another level of the live experience - immersing them from floor to ceiling with PixMob's X4 wristbands, and an LED ceiling made entirely of its NOVA Minis! With the vision of Indochine's creative team, PixMob used its LED fan-technology to turn attendees and venues into an ocean of effects, and a starry sky of LED magic. Très très cool!

Read more about the Indochine tour in the latest issue of LSi

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Ipswich-based loudspeaker manufacturer Celestion has announced the agreement of a new distribution channel in Spain, with the appointment of Lexon as its distributor for the country. Based in Barcelona, Lexon has an impressive portfolio of pro audio products, including Soundcraft, Crest, BSS Audio, Turbosound and Amek. Celestion commented that the appointment had been based on Celestion’s increasing focus on high-performance products for the Spanish install market, and the appointment of Lexon allowed them to address both their traditional MI market and provide exposure to permanent install opportunities.

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The new Wizard from Martin Professional is a DMX-controllable effect light which uses a high-output 250W discharge source (2000 hour life). The Wizard houses two independent color/gobo wheels offering seven colors plus two white and six gobo patterns, as well as a separate shutter for fast strobing. Taking the effect of the popular Acrobat a stage further, the Wizard produces a unique flower-effect which is projected onto a pan and tilt adjustable mirror drum, delivering more than 80 light beams with continuously changing colors and gobo patterns.

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The famous Lyric Theatre in Hammersmith has taken a further step towards a digital future, thanks to a Lottery grant.

In addition to new sound equipment in both performance spaces, The Lyric has also purchased a GeniusPro Strand 520i desk - for use in the Main House, and also replaced the dimmers in the Studio Theatre with digital LD90s. The former was supplied by Stage Electrics and the latter ordered through White Light.

Although Strand’s 500 Series desks had been in the Lyric’s focus for around the past three years, the purchase was still made slightly earlier than expected. "We mounted a production outside, literally, in Lyric Square, with Mac moving lights running alongside conventionals," explained chief LX Clare Tattersall (inset). "It was impractical to move our existing Galaxy outside - and plotting moving lights on a Galaxy is a tedious process -

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Peavey Electronics UK has agreed to renew and extend its support of the University of Westminster’s Commercial music and audio production degree programmes. Peavey has replaced all the backline amplification across the Westminster music department with top line guitar and bass rigs from its Transfex Pro 212, Firebass 700 and TNT115BW ranges, continuing and extending its role as live music sponsor for the BA (Hons) Commercial Music Degree.

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Visitors from the lighting and creative media worlds were given a unique preview of the kinetic future when Screenco fronted a two-day Illuminated Video Workshop at Three Mills Island Studios recently.

In association with a prime team of concert service providers, including Vari-Lite Production Services, Avolites, Stage One Creative Services, Creative Technology, Aerial Camera Systems, SSE Hire, ShowSec and Vertigo Rigging, the experimental two-day interactive workshop graphically highlighted how the boundaries between the rapidly-converging disciplines of automated lighting and video displays are being pushed back. The workshop was the brainchild of Screenco’s Mike Walker, whose vision for the event was born out of a desire to bring the creative skills of video and lighting together. Production manager for the event was Adam Wildi at Hothouse, assisted by Mary Jefferson from Tig

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Acoustic Arrangements has launched a new online shopping site – e-av – offering a wide range of professional AV products, sound equipment and home cinema gear. According to MD Glyn Chapman, the site will be updated on an almost daily basis and will feature a range of special offers and end of line discounts.

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Between 7.30pm on Monday 6th November and 8.00am on Tuesday 7th November, Essex-based lighting and production company Knight International had one of their 7.5 tonne Iveco Trucks stolen, containing an entire ground support system and two covered PA wings. Amongst other things, the truck contained eight pieces of Penn Fabrications 2.4m pre rig loaded with Par 64, three pieces unloaded, 10 pieces of heavy duty ladder box truss at 3m, four at 2m, ninety degree bends, four rolling cages, four winches, six pieces of triangle truss at 3 and 4m and four three-way triangular bends. The 7.5 tonne truck was an S plate with Knight International written on the front, the doors and with the company logo on the driver’s side.If anyone has any information on this crime, or is offered large amounts of truss for very little money, please contact Knight International on 01245 362133.

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Stray Theatre, a small theatre company which tours the length and breadth of Britain, has recently enhanced its performance possibilities with the addition of a Metrodeck staging system from Maltbury. As an independent organisation relying partly on its grant for support, Stray Theatre was delighted to find that it would be cheaper to buy their own Metrodeck system than to hire one. The highly-flexible staging system can be packed down in around 10 minutes, and has proved an ideal tool for the company’s varying production requirements. Stray Theatre’s David Lightbody said: “The feedback has been incredibly positive in terms of the quality added to the production.”

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A major sound, lighting and video installation has just been completed at the new Toxic8 club in Cambridge. With interior design by Steve Howie of Howie Designs, the club’s visual inspiration drew on the imagery of Fritz Lang’s 1927 masterpiece movie Metropolis. But Toxic8 is anything but silent!

CP Sound won the technical design and installation contract amidst stiff competition: audio throughout was designed by CP’s Colin Pattenden with lighting by CP’s Russ Evans.

A ground-floor bar acts as a feeder area for the 500-capacity club, and features music and visuals controlled from behind the bar via a six-way switch and volume control installed by CP Sound, together with three Sony K5 televisions and six JBL Control 28 speakers. Additionally, a mobile DJ set-up is available for special events. This consists of a Denon 2000 Mk 3 twin CD player and a Citronic 1

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Community Professional Loudspeakers, based in Chester, Pennsylvania, has announced the appointment of two new dealers. SK MacDonald, headed by Perry D’Angelo, handles the Middle Atlantic states, with offices in Maryland, New Jersey and Virginia. V-Com, headed by Vinnie Macri will cover the New York metro area and northern New Jersey. Doug Wilkens, Community’s sales and marketing director, said of the appointment: Both firms have a track-record of integrity and targeted sales efforts, backed by a high level of expertise, all of which definitley benefit both our customers and Community.

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At LDI in Las Vegas last month, for the second year running, Artistic Licence received a Cease and Desist order from Color Kinetics Inc (CKI), relating to Artistic’s LED lighting systems.

CKI holds a patent in the USA for the control of colour-changing LED lighting systems, and claims that Artistic’s LED-based Digital Lighting Product range infringes their intellectual property rights. CKI’s Kathy Pattison told L&SI: "We very much respect what Artistic has done in the DMX community, but where LED systems are concerned, we will defend our intellectual property rights."

Artistic’s Wayne Howell told L&SI: "They turned up with their solicitor at the busiest time of the show, when the booth was full of customers. It really amounts to little more than a childish attempt at harassment." Howell continued: "We have made a number of approaches

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Sennheiser RF systems have been used on the recent Channel 5 prison breakout gameshow ‘Jailbreak’. SK50 radio beltpacks and clip mics were used to provide audio for the programme, but also as a means of tracking the 10 contestants as they tried to evade state-of-the-art scanners and infra-red beams in escaping from the purpose-built high-security facility. Technical sound supervisor Steve Williams, whose Sound Moves digital production trailer provided digital recording facilities, specified the RF systems from Cine Video Audio Hire. He explained that the environment was a difficult one for RF operation: The prison was constructed out of galvanised corrugated steel, with the compound’s buildings surrounded by a six-metre-high steel fence. We used Cine Video’s own Triax remote antennae system, which enables the RF aerials to cover a vast area, and between that and t

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London-based sound and lighting production company, Wise Productions, has just invested in eight Nexo PS-8 loudspeakers, complete with PS-8 controller, supplied by ShowCom of Birmingham, with a view to purchasing a further eight cabinets plus controller in December. The first job for the system is this weekend at the recently-opened Wellcome wing of the Science Museum, for the Sterling Prize 2000 presentation of the RIBA (Royal Institute of British Architects) Building of the Year. Some 800 people will be attending the event, which is to be filmed by Channel 4. Paul Gaskell, technical manager for Wise Productions said: “We invariably end up working in places where the acoustics are difficult . . . and we have the burden of a huge weight of health and safety restrictions to adhere to, so top quality, reliable and easy to set-up equipment is of paramount importance."As well as s

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Navigator Systems’ US Division has appointed Ray as Technical Director. Covenant has many years’ experience in the entertainment industry, particularly in the field of information systems. Covenant will oversee technical support for the hundreds of companies in North America currently using HireTrack Eclipse. He will also be involved in the implementation of a new application service where companies will have the option to rent software instead of purchasing new software. The users will connect to Navigator Systems server farms via the internet and run HireTrack Eclipse. Greg Smith, president of Navigator Systems US, commented, "I am so excited that Ray has joined our team. He brings many years experience working with entertainment companies and their software systems."

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PLASA has announced its programme of supported trade show missions for the 2001/02 financial year, under the SESA (Support for Seminars and Exhibitions Abroad) funding programme.

PLASA is able to sponsor four events in 2001. These will be PLASA Presents Light & Sound Shanghai, 4-6 April 2001 (support available for both exhibition and seminars); Showtech Berlin, 10-13 May 2001; AES 111th New York, 12-15 September and SIB International, Rimini, March 2002. In addition to these, PALA Singapore (July 2001) Expomusic Brazil (August 2001) and LDI Orlando (November 2001) are on the reserve list, pending funding reappraisals by British Trade International (BTI).

This programme breaks new ground for PLASA, as it marks the first ever SESA sponsorship of Showtech, as well as PLASA’s first direct sponsorship of an AES exhibition (AES 110th in Amsterdam, 2001, will be sponsored via APRS). I

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Business Diagnostics, the market research company, had now completed its initial fact-finding first stage of PLASA’s industry research programme. As a result, research questionnaires are being mailed out to all PLASA’s full, corporate and international members in mid November. The intention is to have some baseline results by the end of the year.

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No sooner had Sussex-based Multiform Technology Group announced success at the PLASA Show and set out the showroom to include the newest lighting effects from Meteor and Sagitter, than it began to rain!

Multiform’s factory, in close proximity to the swollen River Uck - one of the worst flooded in the South East - was also built two feet below the eventual high water mark of Uckfield town, and therefore suffered a great deal of water damage on and after October 12th 2000.

Help came from all quarters. Once the water had receded enough for the factory doors to be opened, the Multiform team with the help of visitor John Lethbridge, rolled up their sleeves and took up hose pipes, brooms and buckets to clear the invading mud and water. Managing director, Iain Price-Smith told us: "Multiform would like to assure customers that business will return to normal as soon as possible. A

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Just a quick update to our news item last week (Weds Nov 8) concerning a large quantity of truss stolen from Essex-based lighting and production company Knight International. The 7.5 tonne Iveco Truck, which contained an entire ground support system and two covered PA wings, has now been found, minus all the truss! Phil Knight believes that the truss may have been stolen to order or may be sold back into the industry.Anybody with any information should contact Knight International on +44 1245 362133.
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